


Remnants

by mikeyandellie



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: AND I HAVE TIME NOW, Angst, College AU, Emo, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, HI IT'S BEEN A MINUTE, I missed writing, Mileven, Mileven au, Modern AU, Pining, SO HEY FRIENDS IM BACK!!, Stranger Things AU, Young Love, college mileven, lowkey, mileven angst, mileven college au, mileven fluff, so hopefully y'all like this, stranger things, stranger things college au, the party au, the party college au, this is VERY loosely based off of a real life book i actually hate
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-25
Updated: 2019-04-02
Packaged: 2019-12-07 19:01:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18238961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikeyandellie/pseuds/mikeyandellie
Summary: Inside is everything.One blue bracelet. Two lemonade bottle caps. Three used hair ties. Four sticky note love letters. Five black and white polaroids.That’s all Mike has left now. This is the box of him and El. This is why they broke up.





	1. one blue bracelet

Mike felt jittery, the box digging into his hip as it hid in his pocket. He knew it wasn’t much and his meek salary as a college student was really showing, but he hoped she would like it nonetheless.

Inhaling a deep breath, Mike raised his hand to El’s dorm room, knocking in their secret beat.  _ Three, five, three.  _ It was cliché, but their first kiss had been at 3:53 in the afternoon. He only remembered because he was surprised she did it in the first place. After all, what kind of woman like her could ever kiss a geek like him?

“Mr. Wheeler, what brings you here? I told you that it would be impossible to see you again!” El opened the door dramatically. Whenever she was in the middle of one of her soap operas, she felt the need to be a bit over the top and act as though they were pining lovers, suffering in order to be together. She clung to the door, curls that had fallen out of her ponytail framing her face. She had the peach colored lip stain on her mouth, the one she  _ knew _ drove him crazy. It was a wonder how he was so lucky to end up with her.

“Well, my dearest,” Mike spoke gallantly, always one to play along with her, “I decided to risk my life to see you.”

“Hurry in, then! Maxine mustn't see you!” El giggled, pulling Mike to her by his shirt collar. He stumbled into her room slightly, their lips connecting in a sweet kiss. She managed to push the door shut behind him as he peppered more kisses on her forehead.

“Let me guess…‘Days of Our Lives’ marathon?” Mike questioned her, his arms securely wrapped around El’s waist. She had her fairy lights on, encompassing them in a bright soft glow. He could see her open laptop on her bed and her now vacant pillow fortress. This is commonly how he found her on Friday nights when he came over after his last class. El loved nothing more than to sit in bed and cuddle, forcing (not really) him to watch cheesy movies and shows.

“What else could possibly put me in such a dramatic mood?” El laughed, pulling him down into her tiny bed. She settled in between Mike’s legs before pulling her fluffy pink duvet around them. 

Mike glanced at the characters on the screen as she turned her full attention back to the show. Mike’s glance lasted a second as he soon chose to gaze down at El. She had a look of contentment on her face, their fingers laced under the fabric and her head on his chest. She seemed so relaxed and safe. 

Was he really ready to do this? It had only been a few months. They had already exchanged gifts at Christmas, but this felt right. He knew he would chicken out if he didn’t do it now. Besides, he was sure of what he felt. He was sure about her. Hopefully, she would feel sure, too.

“Hey, El?” Mike whispered, his free hand digging into his pocket. She shifted slightly to give his hand enough room. She giggled timidly, unsure of what to think.

“Michael Wheeler, are you propositioning me right now? In my most vulnerable state?” she teased, looking back at him with doey eyes.

He gulped, face turning bright red at her insinuation. No, he was not ready for  _ that. _ He successfully pulled the bright blue box out of his pocket and placed it on her lap that was now free from the expanse of the blanket.

“What is it?” she asked curiously, her fingers rubbing his own. She could definitely see the nervous shake coursing through his hand right now. “I thought you already gave me my Christmas present.”

“This is um...a little different. Just go ahead and open it,” he whispered. She quickly shut her computer, her full attention now to the box on her lap. 

Her fingers left his as she opened the top, marveling at the braided blue bracelet that lay on the soft fabric. She opened her mouth as if she were about to say something when her eye caught sight of the silver pendant. Delicately, she pulled it out, twisting the now obvious heart in her hand.

Mike’s breath caught in his throat as she stared at the engravement.  _ “I love you, El.” _

Silence surrounded them, the only sound being from the whir of El’s laptop. Mike stared at El’s face, unmoving and emotionless. His heart clenched in anxiety. Fuck, it was too soon. He knew about her skepticism towards love, yet he went ahead and professed his feelings like that. 

Just as he was about to go off on a tangent about his self-proclaimed stupid move, El pulled the bracelet onto her wrist. She twisted her body to face him and held his face in her hands. She ran her fingers in his curls, placing a gentle kiss on his lips and enveloping him in peach and sweetness and  _ her. _ She pulled back and smiled.

“I love you, too.”


	2. two lemonade bottle caps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this event occurs before those of chapter one :)

“The others should be here soon,” Mike bit his lip, head swiveling constantly as he tried to spot the rest of his friends. 

El tapped an imaginary watch on her wrist, “Well, Michael, I’ve got some interesting news. They’re a solid 20 minutes late. Maybe we should call them?”

Mike nodded, setting the picnic basket down on the grass and pulling his phone out. Since the group reunited at fall orientation for their second year of college, they had all agreed it would be fun to go to the local park that Saturday to catch up and have a picnic. Max had set the time. Will had packed the blanket. Dustin had packed the food basket. And, Lucas had chosen the park. Mike and El were told about the idea last night and they were simply told to show up. Well, and Dustin told Mike to pick up the basket when he left their dorm.

So, now, Mike and El stood in the park, waiting for their friends who were so excited about this outing, yet they were all impeccably late. Mike set his phone to speaker as he rang up Dustin. 

“Mike, why are you calling me? You have a picnic you should be eating,” Dustin answered, foregoing a traditional response.

“Me? What about you? Where is everyone?” Mike asked, him and El sharing a confused look.

“Well, the thing is...we aren’t coming,” Dustin dropped. Mike was confused for about two seconds before he realized what was going on.

All the boys  _ knew _ that Mike had the biggest, most prominent crush on El Hopper since they met her at Freshman Orientation the previous summer. While the boys had known each other from their small town, El and her best friend, Max, were from California. The six had been put together as a group and they had all meshed together from the start. It was as if their separate groups came together to complement and complete each other. It was strange how easily they got along.

However, this is also when Mike started falling deeper and deeper into his feelings for El. He couldn’t help himself. He had never met any girl like her. She was funny without ever being mean with her teasing. She was intelligent and always willing to give advice even if she was unsure of what she would even do in that situation. She had the ability to light up a room and connect with the people around her like it was nothing. Not to mention, she was hands down the most beautiful girl Mike had ever seen. Meeting her hit him like a ton of bricks.

Now, Mike was never one to have luck with girlfriends or even be successful in dating. In fact, he had only ever kissed one girl and it was on a dare back in high school. There was never anyone that stood out to him, but also no one really wanted to be with him. His crushless mind came to a halt the second he met El Hopper.

He spent Friday nights complaining to the boys about how badly he wanted to be with her. He pathetically attempted to flirt with her and it always went unnoticed. He even heard her give her perspective on love one late night. It scared Mike to know that  _ she _ was scared of love. She said that love seemed daunting and consuming and had never brought her dad any sort of peace. Mike knew she had never been in love and she wanted to keep it that way. That’s why, he always bit his tongue and never did anything other than pine after her and overanalyze all their interactions. He was hopelessly in love with her from the second he met her.

Mike had quickly realized now that he had been set up. There was never going to be any group outing. The boys were probably tired of his lovesick complaining about El and had sneakily put them on a date.

“What about Max?” Mike retorted. He had never exactly confided in her before about his feelings but she definitely knew they existed. She didn’t call him “loverboy” around El for no reason.

“Well, I know she bought the two lemonade bottles that are in there so, my guess is that she won’t be coming either. Have fun!” Dustin laughed before hanging up.

That’s it. He was going to  _ murder _ his friends. 

El finally spoke after being silent. “So, where should we put the blanket?” she asked. Mike was taken aback.

“You still want to have a picnic?” He had assumed she would want to leave because it would be awkward to be alone. Maybe even more so now that she had heard they were practically being forced into a date.

She nodded and shrugged, picking up the basket. El lead the way as Mike trailed behind her, dumbfounded that this plan may have worked.

They eventually settled down under a shady tree, close enough to enjoy the park, but far enough that they could be completely alone. Mike rolled out the blanket and they then pulled out the lunch Dustin and Max had prepared.

As promised, there were two glass bottles of the fancy lemonade the market in town sold. There were also sandwiches, grapes, and chips. They divided the food and then, began to eat in silence.

Mike had no idea what he should be doing in this situation. He had dreamt of their first date for so long and it definitely was not set up like this. He thought he might take her ice skating or something exciting. He wanted her to think he was cool enough to be with her. At least El had had the decency to still sit and eat with him. He could never tell how she truly felt about him. She was certainly his friend, but more? He was never sure.

“Loosen up and take in the sunshine,” El spoke a few moments later. Mike shot her a confused look, mouth full of sandwich.

“Hm?” he questioned. She smiled at him (you know, the smile that made his heart clench?) and held out her palm. The bottle cap of the lemonade always had phrases or quotes. He nodded in understanding before twisting off the top of his own.

He swallowed and read, “Seize the day and what you want most.” Damn it. It was almost as if his friends had these custom made for them.

“Pretty ironic, huh?” El laughed.

“What do you mean?” Mike looked at her, once again feeling confused. 

“Well, mine is practically telling me not to be so uptight all the time. And yours...it’s basically telling you that it’s about time you took me on this date,” she said casually.

Mike nearly choked on his lemonade, coughing and looking at her wildly. What the  _ hell _ ?

“Mike, it’s kinda obvious you like me,” she said softly, looking down at her hands in her lap.

Mike tensed up. Great, just great. He was a creep. He was about to apologize when-

“And, I mean, I like you, too. I’ve just had my guard up for so long that I didn’t know how to properly bring my walls down for you,” she admitted, throwing a confession at Mike that he never expected to hear.

He finally sobered up from his coughing fit before saying, “I never knew that. I figured that it would be a bad decision to try and ask you on a date because I didn’t want to pressure you or anything. But, I guess that’s why everyone else did it for me. You’re right though, I do like you.”

He braced himself, watching as a small smile made its way on her face. 

“I would've said yes if you asked me in the spring. I think Max told me that it was time to grow up and so, I thought about us a little more,” El admitted.

_ Us _ . She thought of them as an “us.” Mike thought he could pass out from happiness.

“So, they basically wasted no time setting us up is what you’re saying?” Mike laughed, the tension in his muscles finally relaxing a little bit.

She nodded and looked him in the eyes again. She smiled and barely fought off the blush that came onto her cheeks.

“You know, you’re the first guy I’ve ever had feelings for,” she dropped casually.

“You’re the first girl for me. I guess we have that in common,” Mike smiled, his head still reeling with thoughts. 

They settled into a more comfortable silence from there, eating the rest of their picnic and taking in each other’s confession.

Mike glanced down at his actual watch to check the time when El spoke up again.

“Hey, Mike?” he heard as he realized they had been there for almost an hour.

“Yeah?” he turned his head, but was met instead with El’s lips on his. She must have moved while he wasn’t looking and now he was kissing the girl he had wanted to kiss for over a year.

He was in shock at first, but then he gradually found himself kissing back. It was sweet and innocent, a perfect first kiss for two people who just proclaimed their feelings for each other. They pulled away and couldn’t keep the grins off their faces.

In the next few minutes, they shared more kisses, finished their food, and packed up their leftover picnic. Mike grabbed the bottle caps and shoved them into his pocket before reaching for El’s hand and leaving the sunny park behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, but the concept of the party setting Mileven on a date makes my heart actually MELT
> 
> I hope you guys like this chapter!! This was one of the easier concepts to come up with, but I really hope I gave you some Mileven feels. Can't promise that the next chapter will be as happy....cliffhanger much?
> 
> Anyways, I hope you like the update! I am working on the next one and hope to have it out soon. Leave me a comment below about your thoughts or even predictions about the next few items!!
> 
> Until next time!! ~Veronica


	3. three used hair ties

I.

 

“When was the last time you cut that thing?” El laughed, her exhaustion from their first Freshman Finals week taking over all sense of coherence away from her thinking.

Mike smirked, rolling his eyes at her exaggeration. He ignored the backhanded comments from his friends about the nature of his hair. His hazy mind was putting El’s words above anything else.

“I happen to like the state of my curly hair. It gives me a level of sophistication unachievable by anyone else here,” he shot back, enjoying the way El would throw her head back in hysterics at his words.

“More like it makes you look a literal child! Oh, sweet baby, you’re so cute,” El mocked him, ruffling his hair in her fingers. He couldn’t deny the way the pet name and compliment ran right through his veins. It made him feel strong and on fire, like her words was all he needed to feel strong.

Out of nowhere, El’s face brightened, eyes widening as if she just had a miraculous revelation wash over her. She pushed Mike back into the couch in the lounge, moving so she could kneel in between his legs.

Mike gulped, never having been this close to her before. God, what he would give to hold her waist and pull her close right now. He could hear the low wolf whistle from Dustin across the lounge area. He managed to flip him off as he watched El pull one of her yellow hair ties off of her wrist.

She gathered his curly hair between her fingers, trying to bring the longest pieces together the best she could. Mike’s view of her was obstructed due to his locks being brought to the front, but he could still make out the look of concentration on her face. At this point in the semester, she probably cared more about perfecting his ponytail than maintaining her 4.0 GPA. 

“Almost done,” she spoke with her tongue between her teeth. She managed to twist the hair tie around his curls, tugging at the ends to make it stand up taller. She observed him for about 5 seconds before her giggle fit came back.

“Worse...so much worse,” she was practically crying now, the sleep fuelling her brain to make this funnier than it actually was.

“Oh, really? I am sure it would heighten my air guitar skills though,” Mike laughed, putting his hands up as if he had a guitar. He pretended to rock out to chords while head banging, causing the ponytail to repeatedly hit him in the face. El held onto his shoulders, trying to steady her chuckles and stay in her position on the couch.

“What in the absolute hell are you two doing?” Max stared at the pair blankly, so unwilling to understand the little world they were lost in.

El calmed down a little, a bright smile on her face. She ran her hand through the ponytail, eyes locked on Mike. “I think I’ll keep that secret between us

 

II.

 

“Michael, I physically cannot breathe,” El sighed, exasperated. He pulled his fingers off of her tummy, reaching up in order to brush the strands of long hair out of her face. 

“Hey, it isn’t my fault that you’re ticklish,” Mike smiled, slightly out of breath from watching his girlfriend. “That and you decided to grow out your hair some more.” 

“Don’t hold that against me! You just can’t keep your hands off of me ever,” she finally cracked another smile, reaching her hand up to cup his face. 

They seemed to always find themselves in these situations. They were so deeply in love for each other, every second bringing them together as young lovers. No physical space in the world could ever be enough, it was all emotional. Their hearts were open and full with thoughts of the other at all times. 

“You’re so handsome,” El’s smile widened, eyes staring into his adoringly. Her thumb gently caressed his cheek as she studied the freckles on his face. (“They’re my little constellations! Who needs a night sky when I have you?” she had once whispered to him.)

Mike blushed, used to her compliments, but them still hitting him like a ton of bricks. He leaned down, peppering light kisses on her eyelids and cheekbones and every little accent on her face.

“El, I am so in love with you,” he whispered, staring intently within her eyes. He shifted now so they lay side by side, legs entangled and arms holding onto each other. 

“You, Michael Wheeler, have changed my entire world,” she whispered back, her voice faltering slightly. “I was always so petrified that love would make me crumble and that I should stay away from it. But, with you? It’s never scary. It’s worth it and so much different than I imagined.  _ You _ made me believe in love, Mike. I didn’t think anyone could ever do that.”

She leaned in, kissing him softly and unloading more of her soul onto him. Mike learned about her tribulations with love early on in their friendship. Her dad had been left heartbroken, his wife, and El’s mother, leaving them for another man when she was a little girl. El hadn’t seen her mother since she was 4, watching the scar of longing and confusion gnaw at her father. She always vowed to never put herself in that kind of situation, but Mike had shattered that silent prayer. He was her salvation and light, letting her know that not all love had to be evil.

They continued with their lovefest for awhile, sharing sweet nothings and passionate kisses and being everything that the other needed. While El feared love, Mike had always yearned for it. Now that he had everything he had ever wanted, he was on top of the world.

Suddenly, they were interrupted by the door of El’s room opening. They jumped, but lazily stayed in their same positions. Afterall, who cares if Max and Lucas have to deal with their affection head on?

“Get a freaking room,” Max fake gagged, covering her eyes and blindly walking her way to her desk. Lucas mocked disgust, raising his hand to his head as though he were going to faint.

“This  _ is _ my room, as it is yours. Might I remind you,  _ Maxine _ ,” El snickered as Max groaned, “I caught you and Lucas last week. Let it go!”

Max shrugged, telling the pair to not be too gross, before she and Lucas left with whatever she had needed.

“Would you look at the time? It’s late and I want pizza,” El yawned, sitting up and pulling Mike up with her.

He nodded and stretched out his back a bit. His eyes caught sight of the pink hair tie that was resting on El’s pillow. It must have fallen out when he was tickling her before.

“Do you need this?” he asked her, picking it up and showing it to her.

She smiled and shook her head before rolling the band on his wrist. “Keep it. It’s the same shade as your blush.”

 

III.

 

Mike could feel the bile coming up his throat. He felt as if somehow the sound frequencies were getting jumbled in his brain or maybe he simply wasn’t sleeping enough? That must be it, he’s sleep drunk. There’s no way he was hearing her correctly, right? There’s no way that El,  _ his  _ El, was saying that she couldn’t do this anymore.

He tuned back in as she said, “-life has just gotten so weird. And, I was an idiot to get so attached and lead you on. I guess I just wanted to try it out and see if I could like love. But, it’s too much. And, I’m sorry if this is hurting you-“

“Hurting me? You’re supposed to be the writer here. You really think hurting is a strong enough word?” Mike sputtered out a laugh, practically feeling all sense of air and life leaving his lungs. He couldn’t help, but be sarcastic. This didn’t make any sense. It wasn’t April 1st, so where did the sick joke in all of this lie? “You aren’t hurting me. You’re fucking destroying me.”

El gulped, nervously folding her arms and then, putting them back at her side. Mike was still sat on his bed, looking up at her. He could tell she was uncomfortable and wanted to leave, but he couldn’t lose her. He refused to lose her over this fear that he thought he had helped her overcome.

She couldn’t even look at him, her eyes shifting to thee floor and the window and every place that  _ wasn’t _ him. His eyes were all for her, taking in her shaky breathing and sullen face. He knew she was trying to be strong for herself, but he couldn’t understand why she felt the need to fight what they had.

“Why are you doing this?” he finally croaked, cutting through the silence that was filling around them. The tension was unbearable and suffocating. Mike could feel tears escaping his eyes as pathetic as that sounded. It was as if she was ripping his heart out with sharp nails and no remorse.

El gulped, hanging her head and staring down at the floor. She was hesitating as though she didn’t have an answer. And, why should she? This was pointless! It was a fluke in their strong relationship. Mike was about to say something else when she interrupted.

“Someone’s going to get hurt. We have gotten too involved with each other and we have made all these plans, but let’s be real here. We are only 19. There’s no way we are actually going to make it through college and after and have a life together. That stuff only happens in fairy tales and my life is no fairy tale. I figure we should just stop now, before we get any more attached.”

It was like her words were a knife, his heart the board. That was it. There was no denying it now, she was going crazy out of her mind. But, it didn’t matter. She was still leaving him.

Mike stood up on shaky legs, stepping close to her so that their chests were touching. He wanted to look her in the face, make her realize that what she was doing was beyond stupid. He gingerly raised her chin up to look at him with his fingers.

“El Hopper, I am in love with you,” Mike breathed out, the tears falling down his face and blurring his vision. He could see that she was crying too, though. “I promise you that all those promises aren’t bullshit. I promised you from the beginning that I would never hurt you. That’s all true still, El. You are everything. My world won’t turn without you by my side. I’m begging you.”

El let out a few tears before pulling away from Mike’s hand. He tried to grab her wrist, his fingers accidently snagging underneath the black hair tie that she had on. It rolled off her wrist, hitting him with a small  _ SNAP!  _  that still stung less than what was happening.

“El, please don’t go,” he cried, watching as she shook her head and left the room.

Mike fell to his knees, clutching her hair tie and wondering where El’s love had wandered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello the last part was one of the HARDEST things i have ever had to write cause y'know, Mike and El are the dream team that are never allowed to be separated. however, the first two parts were pure FLUFF so my heart is content.
> 
> i promise that the rest of the chapters won't be this depressing lol, it will still have happy and sad moments embedded. ya just gotta wait and see :)
> 
> I hope you guys are liking the story so far!! I know it is a bit unorthodox from other AU's, but i love love love it. Please let me know what ya guys think in the comments!!
> 
> Until next time! ~Veronica

**Author's Note:**

> Hey friends, how's it going!?!?
> 
> I haven't written legit since August cause Senior Year has been killing me, but now that the year is winding down, I have more time!! Also, not gonna lie, I lost some inspo, but then it reappeared so I am back!!
> 
> This book is a lil different as the plot's timeline jumps around a little bit in order to explain the events associated with the objects. For general clarification though, it mostly occurs during the party's Sophomore Year of college/university. This is very loosely based off of the book "Why We Broke Up" just in case you guys wanted to know :)
> 
> Anyways, I am so glad I am back and got my creative side running again!! Leave me some nice comments and feel free to message me on tumblr @mikeyandellie :)) Updates are going to be as frequent as I write, so hopefully a chapter a week or so. They all won't be this short, also.
> 
> Okay, see ya later!! ~Veronica


End file.
